Hi guys . Well , i was wondering what is the best way to learn latin ?

I'm a big fan of greek and roman fiction and that's one of the reasons that made me decide to learn latin . I bought i software ( the rosseta stone ) to help me learn the language . I admit it's really hard and confusing as for me it's a far cry from my own native tongue !

Can you please reccomend for me text books that might help me with learning latin ? Is it possible to learn the language by yourself or do you need help with it ?

Hi guys . Well , i was wondering what is the best way to learn latin ?

Hi Oracle, that's a very broad question, but hopefully you'll just find a book you can get along with and that will be your method for learning Latin. Listen to book's instructions, ask questions (here) when you need to, and do as much of the work as possible so you can really grasp the material. If you don't like the book you're using, don't give up or suffer - try a different one!

I'm a big fan of greek and roman fiction and that's one of the reasons that made me decide to learn latin . I bought i software ( the rosseta stone ) to help me learn the language . I admit it's really hard and confusing as for me it's a far cry from my own native tongue !

Latin can be a very difficult language for many people, especially if they have never learned a heavily inflected language before. It is for this reason that I think it is best taught with a book that focuses heavily on the grammar aspect of language, rather than mostly reading and dodging explanation. I don't know anything about Rosetta Stone, but I haven't had much luck with language teaching programs.

Can you please reccomend for me text books that might help me with learning latin ? Is it possible to learn the language by yourself or do you need help with it ?

This website has free Latin books, I recommend Latin for Beginners by D'Ooge. It is an old book, but if you finish it YOU WILL KNOW LATIN I can't account for its difficulty, since I didn't learn from it, but there are people on the forum who are familiar with it and who will help you if you ask. We also have Beginner's Latin Book by Collar and Daniell. Other reputable books include Wheelock's Latin (which I learned from) and the very intensive Moreland & Fleischer's Latin: An Intensive Course, but these are not available for free. I recommend Wheelock's if you can get it easily, but that is just my opinion. Moreland & Fleischer's is good if you want to learn very quickly, but I would not recommend it alone in any other situation.

It is very possible to learn the language for yourself, and many people have done it or are doing it right now and right here. Having a teacher and class make the learning process easier for most people, but if that is not available to you then you can certainly do it on your own. If you do choose to teach yourself Latin, there are many resources on the internet, including Textkit.com, that are at your service. In my opinion, this Latin forum is just as good as a teacher for answering your questions and possibly the best interactive resource you could ask for. The most important thing when learning independently is that you have to keep yourself motivated and keep a steady pace. No one is going to tell you what you have to do or make sure you do it, so you have to be strict with yourself.

I hope you make it through the initial difficulty because once you get through all of that, you get to experience the wonderful complexity of the language and read amazing writings. Anyways, good luck and have fun!

Last edited by benissimus on Mon Mar 22, 2004 7:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Welcome to Textkit! Benissimus gave you some very good advice. Latin for Beginners by D'Ooge would be a good choice, and it's dowrloadable for free on this site; there is also an Answer Key available here, however it is still a work in progress. I have looked briefly at Rosetta Stone, and I can see how it can seem very difficult learning solely from it. I think the software would be better as a supplement to book study.

I too am trying to learn Latin by myself. I've tried using Wheelock's but found it to be rather overwhelming and frustrating. Last week I ordered and recieved "Lingua Latina per se Illustrata, pars I: Familia Romana" (by Hans H. Orberg) and WOW! I am reading and understanding Latin like I never have before (in other words, "at all"). It starts out easy, like the "Díck, Jane & Sally" reading primers we were given in early grade school, and gradually gets harder, but one learns enough from the context and illustrations to be able to keep up. I'm understanding things now, after only the first 6 chapters, that previously went "in one eye and out the other."

I too am trying to learn Latin by myself. I've tried using Wheelock's but found it to be rather overwhelming and frustrating. Last week I ordered and recieved "Lingua Latina per se Illustrata, pars I: Familia Romana" (by Hans H. Orberg) and WOW! I am reading and understanding Latin like I never have before (in other words, "at all"). It starts out easy, like the "Díck, Jane & Sally" reading primers we were given in early grade school, and gradually gets harder, but one learns enough from the context and illustrations to be able to keep up. I'm understanding things now, after only the first 6 chapters, that previously went "in one eye and out the other."

I've heard REALLY good things about this series from people who really know what they're talking about... and I would love to get my hands on them but they are not available in Canada and I haven't been able to find any used. :(

klewlis wrote:I've heard REALLY good things about this series from people who really know what they're talking about... and I would love to get my hands on them but they are not available in Canada and I haven't been able to find any used.

Might your local bookstore be able to special-order it for you? That's how I got my copy: I wrote down the title, author, and ISBN number, brought the info to my local bookstore, they entered said info into their computer, et voila! The book arrived 5 days later -- with no extra charge or postage fees.

I've heard REALLY good things about this series from people who really know what they're talking about... and I would love to get my hands on them but they are not available in Canada and I haven't been able to find any used.

Klewis, if you decide to check that out and have success doing so do post here to let me know!

benissimus wrote:This website has free Latin books, I recommend Latin for Beginners by D'Ooge. It is an old book, but if you finish it YOU WILL KNOW LATIN I can't account for its difficulty, since I didn't learn from it, but there are people on the forum who are familiar with it and who will help you if you ask.

His evidence is based on me you know, and despite all those glossy delightful books by authors whose names always contain some variation of "cock" (seriously), this ancient piece is so valuable. Use it well and it will make you succeed if your aim be true and your character gallant enough.

klewlis wrote:I've heard REALLY good things about this series from people who really know what they're talking about... and I would love to get my hands on them but they are not available in Canada and I haven't been able to find any used. :(

Might your local bookstore be able to special-order it for you? That's how I got my copy: I wrote down the title, author, and ISBN number, brought the info to my local bookstore, they entered said info into their computer, et voila! The book arrived 5 days later -- with no extra charge or postage fees.

Julia

If they did it would be really expensive--there is no Canadian distributor so it would have to be ordered directly from the publisher in the US. This means that by the time I pay shipping, taxes, duties, and exchange, the book is twice the price. :( That is why I was looking for it used... Though I haven't tried Amazon...

Just copy and paste the ISBN # 8799701650 into their search engine and it pops right up, quite reasonable price actually. The first time I searched there for it, it came up with an older edition selling for nearly $60! (cough!)

Thanks all for your help I think text books are much better than the programme as it does'nt have any translation and i have to concentrate hard on words ( lucky i did some spanish back in college and i can understand some words which come from latin such as corrit and volat ) and i was really stuck big time when it came to quae , quo and other question forms which made me go nuts !!

Anyways guys , i will be ordering my books soon and on the meantime please bear with me and my stupid questions which will be popping on your screens frequently

If you decide to order books through Amazon, please consider supporting Textkit by using the Amazon search feature on the Support Textkit page. Textkit gets a minor benefit (read: it helps Jeff keep this site up and running) when you place items in your Amazon Shopping Cart via this "gateway".

klewlis wrote:I've heard REALLY good things about this series from people who really know what they're talking about... and I would love to get my hands on them but they are not available in Canada and I haven't been able to find any used.

klewlis wrote:I've heard REALLY good things about this series from people who really know what they're talking about... and I would love to get my hands on them but they are not available in Canada and I haven't been able to find any used. :(

Personally, I'm using "Latin for Beginners" and find it to be excellent!

The problem here is that you're quoting american sites in american dollars. That is not feasible because as I said before, if I order from the US I have to pay shipping, tax, duties, and exchange, and then it ends up being twice the price (I've tried this before ;). I have to be able to order from a canadian distributor... I think amazon.ca will work.